Dec 30, 2014

What's wrong with Xylitol?

Now and again we get cutting edge health fans asking us, "hey whats up with xylitol? and why does The Dirt avoid using it?"

Well without writing and encyclopedic blog article here are the main concerns we have and a link to a few articles with more in depth information. Happy Reading!

Most xylitol is made from GMO corn and is a highly processed food like substance, it is NOT "natural" in the sense you and I would use the word (more on that topic here). (It can be made from birch tree bark, if so, the package will state it... Even so 1. birch xylitol is still extremely processed and 2. most "products" like finished foods and personal care items containing xylitol use corn)

Most commercial Xylitol is processed using heavy metals, chemicals, is bleached and is hydrogenated to extract the sugar alcohols from the fiber of the plant. Xylitol is fairly new on the food scene so we have little evidence of long term use in a large population, If we think of other hydrogenated foods we will quickly realize they have a long history of turning out to be very bad for our health, think margarine, fast food or donuts... all cause chronic inflammation and disease. Reasoning would lead one to err on the side of caution and avoid any hydrogenated processed food.

It is, however, a great way for corn farmers to recoup costs they lost to low sales of high fructose corn syrup. We could not put it better than Crunchy Betty does:

"What bothers me – what ALWAYS bothers me – is when companies (or governmental regulatory bodies, even) tout something as natural, when its sole ability to exist in the way we consume it as a supplement is based on wholly unnatural, synthetic chemical processes.

It’s very reminiscent of another industry recently begging and pleading us to believe their product is natural. High-fructose corn syrup, anyone?

Now for the kicker.

A great amount of the xylitol that’s released for consumption (whether it be in gum, in food products, or in bulk that we buy to cook and sweeten with) is made from corn.

How far of a stretch is it to wonder if the Corn Refiners Association finally came to the realization that the public would never get on the high-fructose corn syrup bandwagon ever again? How in the world will they recoup those losses?

What’s the logical next step for them?

Xylitol?

And if you think your xylitol made from birch (which is rare and expensive these days) is better, from a chemistry standpoint, it is structurally the same. Other than the fact that it’s not genetically modified, like the corn might be. It does, however, contribute to deforestation."

Since it is a processed extracted sugar alcohol it is not digested like a natural sugar and throws the gut's ecosystem out of balance.

There is also a small concern about it's toxicity in rats and a possible link to increasing epileptic seizures.

it is toxic to dogs and can kill your pets if they eat your food, gum or toothpaste

Finally:

The claims about Xylitol preventing cavities is based on the theory that bacteria on the tooth surface eats sugar creating acid that decays the enamel which causes cavities, anyone who looks into modern holistic dentistry will soon find that the current thinking is so much more complicated than this. Cavities are a symptom of malnutrition leading to a deterioration of the tooth. essentially cavities are a bone disease caused by a lack of the proper diet and sunshine (vitamin D), therefore xylitol's anti-bacteria qualities are not only systemically toxic but only a band-aid over a much deeper problem. More here and here

Here are further links of the topic:

http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/xylitol-not-as.../

http://www.petinsurance.com/healthzone/pet-articles/pet-health-toxins/Xylitol-Poisoning.aspx

http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/xylitol.asp

http://lesliekenton.com/health/xylitol-good-or-bad/

At The Dirt we believe that the best things for you are as close to nature as possible, our ingredients should be minimally processed and extracted without dangerous chemical solvents. We also believe there are quite a few modern ingredients that are beneficial but we only use tried and true ingredients that have been around long enough to be proven safe (like tinctures etc) Xylitol does not meet our companies standards of safety and naturalness.

Hopefully that gave an informative overview of why we do not use xylitol if you have any pressing questions that google cannot answer please shoot us an email!

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